1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to antibodies for treating Alzheimer's patients.
2. Description of the Related Art
Beta amyloid peptide (Aβp), the product of processed amyloid precursor protein, is accumulated in the brains of Alzheimer patients for reasons that have not been elucidated yet. Immunotherapy towards Aβp is one approach researchers are using in looking for a relief or a cure for this disease. Antibodies generated towards the N-terminus of the beta amyloid peptide prevented the fibrilization of Aβp peptide in vitro, and significantly reduced the cytotoxic effects of Aβp fibrils on PC12 cells (Frenkel et al., 2000). Also, immunization with Aβ of transgenic mice that express the human amyloid precursor protein (APP) and exhibit Alzheimer's-like pathology, demonstrated that the mice developed humoral reaction towards the antigen, and exhibited a significant reduction in plaque load compared to controls (Schenk et al., 1999). Moreover, in these mice, active clearance of amyloid by microglial cells was noted. Bacskai et al. (2002) reported that FITC-labeled F(ab)2 fragments of monoclonal anti-Aβ antibody or full-length antibody led to the clearance of 45% of the amyloid deposits in 18-month-old transgenic mice within 3 days. These results suggest that immunotherapy has the potential to either delay the generation of or reduce one of the major hallmarks of Alzheimer's pathology, i.e., Aβ plaques.
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